Rigid-bottom collapsible last



A. F. LITTLEFIELD.

RIGID BOTTOM COLLAPSIBLE LAST.

APPLICATION FILED MAR.23, 1920.

1,359,61 1 Patented Nov. 23, 1920.

Fig.4 i 5 f UNITED STAT S PATENT orrics.

AUGUSTINE F. LITTLEFIELD 0E LYNN, MASSACHUSETTS, ASS'IGNOR TO UNITED SHOE MACHINERY OUBPOIR-ATIQN, 0F PATEBSON, NEW JERSEY, A CORPORA- TION OF NElV JERSEY.

RIGID-BOTTOM OOLLAPSIBLE LAST.

Original application filed April 16, 1919, Serial Ho. 290,441.

Specification of Letters Patent.

1920. Serial, N0. 368,125.

To all whom it may concern Be it known that I, AUGUs'rINn F. Lrrriics ncnn, a citizen of the United States, residing at Lynn, in the county of Essex and State of lllHSSEEChHSQlBtS, have invented certain Improvements in Rigid-Bottom Collapsiole Lasts, of which the following description, in connection with the accompanying drai'vings, is a specification, like reference characters on the drawings indicating like parts in the several figures.

This invention relates to boot and shoe lasts and in particular to collapsible lasts, and this application is a division of my application Ser. No. 290,441, filed April 16. 1919.

in some methods or lines of boot and shoemaking, it is desirable to employ lasts which are permanently rigid against flexure or vertical bending moments. If a block last is employed and the shoe upper ls conformed closely thereto, removal of the last without injury to the shoe is laborious and dithcult and sometimes practically im possible. Hence, it is common to use socalled collapsible or hinged lasts, the heel portions of which can be moved to give sufiicient relief to permit ready withdrawal of the from the shoe, thus sacrificing permanent rigidity.

A particular object of the present invention is to provide a last which, for all classes of work, will always present a rigid or inflexible sole surface portion from toe to heel, but which is capable of being laterally collapsed to permit ready withdrawal from the-shoe. In attaining the object I provide the last with a laterally collapsible heel portion the sole surface of which is rigid against fiexure or vertical bending moments.

I have illustrated an embodiment of my invention in which the last, although having an inflexible sole surface from end to end, may still be termed a collapsible or hinged last. The hinged structure, however, is such, that instead of flexing the whole heel part on an axis transverse of the last so as to shorten the last as a whole as is common with hinged lasts in general, the lateral thickness or width of the last at the heel may be reduced to allow the heel of the shoe to len then a little by virtue of not being filled laterally.

An important feature of the invention consists in a last having a rigid heel section and a heel section. movable upwardly, preferably diagonally and parallel to its outside surface, to collapse the heel part as a-whole. V i

These and other features of the invention comprising certain combinations and arrangenients of parts will be understood from the following description of a preferred embodiment thereof selected for purposes of illustration and shown in the accompanying drawings in which,

Figures 1 and 2 of the drawings are, respectively, a side elevation and plan view, portion being broken out and in section in Fig. 1. i

Fig. 3 is an end elevation of the forepart of the last from which the heel part has been removed.

Fig. 4: represents a section on line 4 of F 2.

Fig. 5 is a sectional view similar to t but showing the parts in different relative positions, the plane of section through each of the two heel parts being the same as in Fig. 4, although'one part in Fig. 5 has been swung up to substantially the dotted line position of Fig. 1.

Fig. 6 is a side elevation heel section of the last.

Fig. 7 is a perspective view of a tool or implement which may be employed for unlocking the two heel sections of the last so that one may be swung as hereinafter described.

The forepart 40 of the last is provided with a recess 41 (Fig. 3) which receives the web 42 of the rigid heel section 43, the con nection being rendered permanent and rigid by means of transverse pins 44. The rigid heel section 43 is preferably of metal and may be a casting. Asbest illustrated in Fig. 6, it is formed on its inner face with a recess 45 having an undercut portion 46 of the rigid to serve as a keeper for the locking pin hereinafter described. The section 43 is also formed with a rib 47 having an inclined face to form an abutment for the inclined front face of the heel section 48 pivotally connected to the section 43 by a pin 49 which is transversely inclined substantially as indicated by the dotted lines in F ig. 4.

The contracting orsliding faces of the sections 43., i8 are, of course, 1n a plane perpendicular to the axis of pivot pin 49, and are.

preferably substantially parallel to the outside lateral face of the section 48.

Fixed in a mess in the section L8 is a thirnble 50 having a band 51 rotatably mounted upon its lower end, the inner wall of the thimble 50 having a vertical groove 52 terminating at its lower end in a lateral groove 53. A pin 54; is rigidly mounted in the band 51, the outer end of said pin being adapted to engage the groove 46 (Fig. 4:) andthe inner end of the pin projecting through a slot 5% in the thinible 50 into the interior thereof.

A tool 55 which may be a jack pin is provided with a recess 56 in one side of its lower end. and has a pin 57 projecting from its side (Fig. 7).

Mounted in an inclined recess in the sec- 7 tion 43 is a detent 8 the front end of which is preferably rounded, said detent being pressed outwardly by a spring 59 so that the detent may engage either one of two keeper re'esses 60 in the inner face of section as (Fig. 4).

\Vhen the last is in the condition shown in Fig. 2 and by full lines in Fig. hit is adapted to be used to enable any of the or dinary shoe operations to be perfoi'inedupon it. As a whole, this last is permanently rigid against ilexure. \Vhen it is to be removed from the shoe, such a tool indicated in Fig. 7 is inserted in the thinible 55 its pin 57 sliding'down the groove the same time, its recess 56 engages the inner end of the locking pin 54:. Then, by tinrning V i the tool, the pin 57 passes into the extension 53 of the vertical groove 52 and recess of said tool acts upon the pin 5% to rotate it and its carrying band 51 until the outer end of the pin 5st which has been engaged keeper section 4:6 reaches the vertical, rece l5 so that the heel section 8 can be swung up on its pivot 4.9 as by means of forward pressure exerted against the tool 55 which is now 10 ked in the thiinble 50 by reason of its pin 57 being engagedwith the lateral extension 53 of the groove in the thinible. This shifting of the section a8 is readily effected since the spring 59 is not of suilicient strength to causethe detent 58 to rigidly remain in the upper recess 60. When the section 4E8 has been swung up to the dotted line position of Fig. l and to the full line position of Fig. 5, the lateral thickness of the last at the heel has been diminished sufliciently to enable the heel of the shoe to lengthen a little because it is not filled laterally.

in the This invention provides for the displacement of tending slice of the heel. The heel width is reduced by turning a section of the heel diagonally vertically in a direction which is substantially parallel to its outside lateral surface. The lateral thickness of the heel is thus diminished to allow the heel of'the shoe to lengthen sufficiently to enable the last to be separated from the shoe.

Having now described my invention, I claim 1. A last having a heel section formed rigid with the main body of the last as regards vertical bending, and a second heel section constructed and arranged to move upwardly relatively to the fi1Si3-11tI11Cl heel section to collapse the last.

2. A last having a heel section formed tegrally with the main body of the last, and a second heel section arranged move upwardly and laterally relative y to the firstnauied heel section to collapse the last.

. 3. A last having a rigid heel section formed with an inclined side face, and a heel section pivotally connected therewith and constructed and arrangedto be moved upwardly in a diagonally vertical direction substantially parallel to its outside latcra surface.

a A last having-a rigid heel section pro v1dedw1th a laterally inclined fa'e, a n1ov-- able heel section having an inclined face adapted to cooperate with the inclined face of the rigid heel section, said two heel sections having a pivotal connection the axis f which is inclined laterally of the last.

A last having a rigid heel section provided with a laterally inclined face a inovable heel section having an inclined face adapted to cooperate with the inclined face of the rigid heel section, said two heel sections having a pivotal connection the axis of which is inclined laterally of the last, and means for locking the heel sections with their bottom surfaces in substantial alineinent.

a longitudinally and vertically ex 6. A last having a rigid heel section provided with a laterally inclined face, a movable heel section having an inclined face adapted to. coiperate with the inclined face of the'rigid heel section, said two heel sections having a pivotal connect-ionthe axis of which is'inclined laterally of the last, the rigid heel sectionv having a keeper recess and the movable heel section having a locking pin adapted to engage said recess and torbe freed therefrom.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification.

AUGUSTINE F. LITTLEFIELD. 

